Students Massacred 2 Days Before Nigeria’s 53rd Independence – President Jonathan’s Speech Today – A Time For Reflection (and Action?)

Today is Independence Day – it’s a time for celebration of our emancipation from the British, but also a time of somber reflection. How well does our country “work”? Some people say you can know how safe somewhere is by if you can walk on the streets, but how about when you’re sleeping? We just had an article asking you to share your wishes for Nigeria, it’s now time to share our reflections.

Before you say we are late, we thought it best to talk about it on the one day in the year dedicated to Nigeria – are we truly one? – {keep in mind, most of the students slaughtered, if not all, are thought to be Muslims}. Is our country worth celebrating? You decide.

As you probably know, a deep tragedy struck two days ago – Sunday September 29, 2013 – in Damaturu, in Yobe State – in the North East of Nigeria.

Alleged members of the extremist Islamic terrorist sect Boko Haram – dressed in camouflage attacked male hostels at the Yobe State College of Agriculture, specifically avoiding the female ones – and awoke a sleeping group of students, aged between 18 and 22, forcing them to huddle into groups, slaughtering each group with a stream of bullets. Around 40 male students were initially reported dead. Now the death toll has risen to the 70s, as some were also hacked with cutlasses and machetes, and were injured initially.

Here’s an eye witness account, from Reuters:

“They started gathering students into groups outside, then they opened fire and killed one group and then moved onto the next group and killed them. It was so terrible,” said one surviving student Idris, who would only give his first name.

“They came with guns around 1 a.m. and went directly to the male hostel and opened fire on them … The college is in the bush so the other students were running around helplessly as guns went off and some of them were shot down,” said Ahmed Gujunba, a taxi driver who lives by the college.”

Parents and families were found mourning at the Sani Abacha Specialist Hospital mortuary in Damaturu in Yobe yesterday. We pray for all the victims’ families to find solace in this tough time. Losing young men so full of promise – not even being able to bury their full bodies.

The Yobe state governor addressed the issue yesterday in a statement – Ibrahim Gaidam, “devastating, heinous and barbaric,” and called for increased protection from the military. Survivors and relatives also seem to echo that sentiment.

The president – Goodluck Jonathan said on the tragedy,

“The people they killed they don’t even know them. This is the creation of the devil … No Boko Haram or any group can frustrate this country … I assure Nigerians we’ll do what is required to protect them.”

We have to to say, were not impressed by President Jonathan’s Independence speech today. He didn’t truly allay our fears on the lack of security and powerlessness we feel every single day. He said he will institute a national committee – but we have had many of those – what do they solve?

For the governor of Yobe to call on militant force, what confidence does that say we have in the investigative powers of the police?

For the the President to say this is the work of the devil, can only God save us now?

Jonathan said today,

“I admit that these may not be the best of times for our nation. Our people are divided in many ways -– ethnically, religiously, politically, and materially. I cannot hide from this reality.”

“This act of barbarism is a demonstration of the extent to which evil forces will go to destabilize our nation, but I assure you, they will not succeed.”

Jonathan plans to institute a national committee that will plan a “national dialogue” ready to report within a month. Well, we’ll see how that goes.

As for us – yes, you, reading this, what action can we take – if any? This goes deeper than a social media campaign a la #childnotbride. It’s not about a law. It’s about a general state of being – fear, feeling unsafe.

Thievery and violence is normalized in this country. It’s so normal to hear “my phone got stolen” that we don”t even think twice about it. We don’t think twice about the rotting body we rode past on the express way in the morning. An accident? A robbery? With so much to do we carry on just going. We can choose to chop rice and stew today, enjoy a day from work, or we can try to do something – anything.

Simply put, I no longer think about Nigeria as Nigeria does NOT think about me. For this country, the beautyful ones were born, have long died, and have since been buried. It’s everyone fend for yourself out here no government or militia group will ever give us the safety that we need or deserve. So grab a gun and arm yourselves. A word is enough for the wise.

guys, the problem wiv naija is that every single one of us both home and abroad. esp, those abroad. we can all spot n list all d problems with naija, but i dare anybody to come up with ultimate solution or even part solution. i have searched my soul and hate to admit () and @ least 90 million nigerians cannot do better tha

Leave religion out of the equation. The oldest trick the is the best weapon the ‘devil’ has is to divide to conquer. Together we Bargain; Divided we Beg. There is always the enemy that you never see. The one who throws out the bone and watch you fight while they pull the strings. Don’t look for differences rather for the commonalities that we all have. Pollution kills. It is time to go green and to heal the land.

guys, the problem wiv naija is that every single one of us both home and abroad. esp, those abroad. we can all spot n list all d problems with naija, but i dare anybody to come up with ultimate solution or even part solution that will put an end to the rot. i have searched my mind, body n soul n hate to admit it that though jonathan is culpable in all spheres of his modus operandi. 90-95% of nigerians if elected, cant improve the lot of the country. so mathematically from my hypothesis, we r left with 5% of nigerians who can challenge jonathan or perhaps do better if elected. but since it is well documented in democracy that “Minority can never rule over majority” so it means whenever we get any elected leader from that 5% minority pool. the only logical thing to do is to exploit the remaining 95% of the nation. A situation we r all too familiar with since the so called independence. This they learnt from their colonial masters ” the art of disguised exploitation” but ofcourse since we r all black in d nation, there is no urgent need or ruse to disguide the exploitation of masses. it is there happening daily and clear to see like d biblical mene mene tekel urphasin( in d words of hon. P Obahiagbon) the lack of education, knowledge and so called exposure of most nigerians makes it very easy for the scam called Nigeria to hold and for the leaders to loot with impunity. although now helpless, the masses in Nigeria are to blame as well. the average nigerian is as corrupt as the C.IA n FBI in the states. (me included) as far as i’m concerned, those r d only match for d average nigerian. and now we wonder y things dont change when these average kids get into public office!!!! both d leaders n followers dont have what it takes in order to get us back to the path of normality, let alone greatness!!!! y do u lot think we r the quickest to leave it to God? because, truth be told, d average brother cannot help himself , let alone others. in a nutshell, lets admit it n utter it silently ” we r not intellectually sound enough”to be expecting or demanding the merits of democracy so soon. i can go on and on, but inwill cut it short here, hopin u can see y its always gonna be a swim or sink case in nigeria. one mans gain is another mans lost, one country’s boom is another country’s bust happy colonised mentality day

shut down the schools in that area. we can’t keep the students safe yet. it’s not fair to keep sending them like sheep/ram to the slaughter. Parents need to take their kids out of school ASAP. You’ve been warned. Security is bad. if the place was in anyway secure, those people would not have been able to come in. At least not without some type of a fight

Dividing Nigeria does to equate to dividing the good and the bad people…that’s what we need…a country where there are consequences for barbaric, corrupt and incompetent behavior …we always look for the crass way out without thinking critically….who cares about ethnicity or religion? What I care about is the moral and values of the people around me…we keep missing the point…God have mercy on us…may their souls rest in peace…what a huge loss to the nation…

are they killing their own kinds (like syria) or are they killing ppl from other tribes. I hope they are killing their own kinds. There less of them there are in the world the better. The world is Tired of these MFckers.

I don’t understand y we have the military in this country when they can’t stop these killings or are they for decoration. People are dying everyday and we are still talking about committees. Something must be done to stop these ruthless people who have no heart. The Government must act now. Use the military, abeg.

What a hospital named after sanni Abacha nah wah after all the atrocity the man and his family commitesnder his son has the guts to want to run for political office and also has the. Tell Nigerians to let by gone be bygones my heart goes out to the students and families mya God give you the strenght to take this tragedy

Same old story. Boko haram is evil, muslim extremists are evil, but there will always be evil. What matters is how you respond to evil. In my opinion, the average Nigerian is numb to injustice. Boko haram thrives because of us. We all have to share in the blame. Although, this president just needs to go away. That’s how I was under Abuja heat for 30 minutes queued up for petrol, next thing taxi driver just cut everybody off and jumped inside fuel station. I almost had a seizure. The only reason I didn’t fight with that man was because he refused to come down from his car and he kept on apologizing. But everybody was looking at me like I was the mad man.

Bless you Ness for this. I think the major problem is that everyone is backing reality and focusing on the less consequential things. I know that I’m guilty of this BUT I think the online media is largely responsible. By media I mean the bella naijas, LIB, LLs, and so on. Each day 80% of the news that WE the “enlightened class” are exposed to is about fashion, gossip and whatever else you have. The more important news is glossed over and in the end what remains in our subconscious are irrelevant particles. See us trash “celebrity” outfits, gush over “omo olowo” wedding and analyse music videos but when some serious news is published the article begs for opinions… and the cycle continues. This is such a painful situation because I know for a fact that we have so many young and intelligent Nigerians on Bella Naija alone that can start a movement but the question is, how can bella naija team support this? Personally, I will be ready to work.

May the soul of the innocent slain students hunt their killers! May they die brutal deaths to their 10th generation. Nigeria will not give in to terrorism ,I do not understand why the Governor wants military help ! and I thought there was a state of emergency in the those boko haram infested states. They are even helping Christianity,as a lot of muslims are converting to Christianity,as they know the difference between love and barbarism .

“Creation of the devil”….this phrase tells you everything you need to know about how serious your president takes this crisis. Oya let’s begin a month of national fasting and prayers, my fellow Christian, Muslim and Traditionalist brothers and sisters….SMH!

God!! My lord Jesus,please give Jonathan an advice on ♓øw to tackle this problem..through a trance or your instrument..we cannot do it on our own, father.. We ask for help..we can’t be keep running away from our country cos of insecurity..keep us under your mighty wings Amen!!!

Its either Nigeria is being divided or the Us troops are invited over.. Those ones don’t smile@all… Nigeria is as good as independent,the british should maybe come into play again..Dear President think about this α̇̇̇̊Ω̶̣̣̥̇̊d̶̲̥̅̊ ask God to help α̇̇̇̊Ω̶̣̣̥̇̊d̶̲̥̅̊ show you mercy becos he’ll question U̶̲̥̅̊ over the people he gave over to you to serve as a leader, what you did wiv them..life is so precious to God

I swear.. I am tired of seeing these sort news about killing and boko haram..what can be done ? if its means dividing the country let it happen! if the muslims want their own country pls let it happen or since they say there is soooo much money in Nigeria, then invite the US to come help this country! This is pure EVIL!!

Really? This IS what you think is the solution? I hope you realize that there are muslims in Ijebu Ode, there are muslims in Ilorin, there are muslims in Auchi.

Also, you think that the US should be called in to “help” y’all? I hope you watch the news… You need to. Because I aint gonna need to talk to you about the US government shut down of the past couple of days.

Boko Haram didn’t begin it’s reign of terror today. We have learnt to tolerate and somewhat accept the brutal and senseless killings that is their trademark. History in Nigeria has thought us that these acts of violence are acceptable. The boarders who were murdered in their sleep have become history, countless men, women,children and even the unborn who where blown to bits in churches have become history, our brothers, sisters, cousins, nieces, nephews, hundreds of villagers who were burnt to death or hacked to death in their sleep have become history, husbands and wives-to-be, who went to serve their nation up north and never returned have become history too! At first we assumed it was a religious war, then we said it was political now we’ve come to realise and know it is terrorism and over time Nigeria has become a terrorist nation. We make a lot of noise and condemn these killings but in the end do nothing and hope too, that the problem just goes away. In a little while, we will again hear and see gruesome pictures of yet another.

I think what is best for this country is to invite the British back for a ten (10) year contract to come and teach the present crop of Nigerians Statesmanship and if possible, help clear the mess that they bequeathed to us in the name of Independence. There is so much selfishness, nepotism, corruption, incompetency, ethnicity and other divisive tendencies in our statecraft and body politics to allow for genuine growth and development. This is a drastic measure but at the same time the only way if we are looking for a solution to Nigeria’ mirage problem. Let us take the humble pie and bury our pride for a solution if we are interested in moving Nigeria forward. I am a Nigerian and I regret to admit that this is even a consideration at all, not to talk of it representing my opinion after 53 years of independence. Sadly, to me, it is the bitter TRUTH. We’ve failed ourselves in all ramifications and at all levels of governance and there is no hope in sight that someday, we might be able to reverse the trend on our own.

if a whole president of the Federal republic of Nigeria is saying it is the work of the devil ,eh well its the work of the devil noni , what can one do ? when our number one leader , who should have the power to deal with these animals with extreme prejudice says its basically a spiritual problem and has commissioned yet another committee to plan a “national dialogue” . No really what should we the followers do?

What is happening in Nigeria is a case of “e no concern me”. As long as the people who died are not related to us, we just don’t care. When Christians were being bombed to bit in Churches, it was the same attitude from the Muslims in the North. Now that Muslim students are being targeted, Christians and indeed people who are not related to them, just turn a blind eye. Until we begin to realise that that person who has been killed could so easily be our relative, we will never stand up to confront evil. And this is not only related to Boko Haram or insecurity, but the entire country. If all our politicians children were schooling in Nigerian universities, ASUU strike would not linger till now, if all of them used our hospitals, the hospitals would not be so bad. I could go on and on. It’s left for us to change the status quo. I believe if Nigerian youths will actively demand change, instead of being concerned about the latest entertainment gist, the government will sit up. I really wish we could all ask ourselves “what if that was my brother? would I just do nothing?”

Oh my God!!! This is happened to children in school?? Oh my dear Lord, why?? What did the killers stand to gain???? What kind of atrocity is this and heaven help the poor parents… Oh, boko haram ohhhhhhhhhhh. How long? What amount of blood does the Nigeran government need to see on the streets before real action is taken to protect citizens??? And the only actions that is affordable to ordinary citizens is the tool of organized protests, anything outside of that will give rise to vigilante justice. We have a government installed for a reason and this is one of those reasons is protection of every Nigerian. How long has boko haram been running loose? Why do we still have to live in fear of them? These are some of the questions every Nigerian should start asking their elected representative. Get every community to start doing that at all levels (from school children to market traders/business owners to highly respected entertainers) and see whether any obtuse government can continue to ignore our clamour.

Very true. If all of us, from the market woman to the big shot, start asking questions, the government will wake up. We are far more in number than all these politicians. If we will become bothered enough to realize that the next person might be our family member, then we will do something. Until then…

It was Christians before, but now its also Muslims, it is currently in the North-East, its only a matter of time before it comes South. Our security agencies do not seem capable of stopping BH if they decide to attack Lagos, they have attacked Abuja before. As much as its good to pray, we should confront issues too before they overwhelm us. God will only help when we have done our best, but we haven’t yet.

That is so annoying how there are so many articles n things saying how safe is nigeria. Honestly no where is safe not one place on this planet. Everytime we leave the house, drive, go to work, go to s ch ool, we take a risk we don’t even know what will happen in the next hour! We are only safe in Christ, give your life to Him, let ur security be in Him no matter what is going on around you! He will keep you in the times of danger *psalm 91*

Also humans can only do so much, they can’t protect us from danger only the living God can do that. I’m deeply sorry for the students who lost their lives and I pray that God will comfort their families

Are they sure the killers are Nigerians? That part of the country is sitting just at the border. My their souls and that of other Nigerians killed senselessly since post independence , rest in perfect peace. Amen.

If Mr. Jona really wants to defeat the BH terrorist gangsters, he should take along with him those Northeastern governors, and a couple of delegates from the north as a regoin to President Obama in the U.S. and explain his situation. I am sure Mr. Obama will aprove the sales of appropriate arms to Nigeria, and KO those terrorist BH gangsters, once and for all. If Mr. Jona keeps toyiing with those BH gangsters, they are going to storm their parths into Aso Rock one of these days, and take out the entire complex. Nigeria military is not equipped to take on those BH gangsters. If Mr. Jona thinks he is going to close out BH by December, he is only risking his own life in Aso Rock.

The Nigerian military is illequpped to take on BH with those Civil war erea arms. Mr. Jona is goinog to have to get serious otherwise he is goiong to get thrown out, come February 2015.

Mr. Jona should quit playing cat and mouse with BH. One billion is not going to buy weapons to take out BH. Someone is finanicng them, and Mr. Jona must be willing to outspend them into oblivion, untill he defeats them. Jona is toying with something that could swallow his presidency. Go to America, and buy approriate arms, before it is too late. Go now and do it, and stop preaching. You have done that for too long and more dead bodies have pile up. It only makes you look terrible, as an administration. Go now righ away. What else can we say. Go to the U.S. and buy real arms, and take out these BH boys, now. It could be too late with your preachings.